Everyone Else Awakened, But I Just Opened a Pokémon Pet Shop

Dong Feng and Zhu Jianyuan exchanged a look, hesitating for a moment.

Dong Feng was honestly a bit surprised that Su Bai knew about the existence of Sub-beast.

But considering Su Bai's strength, it made sense that Zhu Jianyuan had chosen to reveal some part of the truth.

And as for the young Trainers—they had more than proven themselves.

They could no longer be treated like ordinary students. These were youths who might one day change the fate of humanity…

"Sigh… I'll explain it, then," Zhu Jianyuan said with a heavy sigh. "Honestly, I didn't tell you the full story before because I didn't want to kill your motivation."

"I thought it would take you a while before you encountered any of this. Who would've thought you'd run into something of this level so soon…"

He shook his head and looked toward Dong Feng.

A Sub-beast of such high caliber had been hiding right within the Contract Master Guild in Boulder City. Who would've imagined?

"Technically, all of this information is classified," Zhu Jianyuan continued helplessly.

"There's a confidentiality agreement. We're supposed to wait for higher-level authorization before sharing this stuff."

"But since you've already gone toe-to-toe with an enemy of this level… withholding it now would just make things worse. You'd end up charging off in the wrong direction."

If he had a choice, Zhu Jianyuan wouldn't reveal these suffocating truths so soon.

But Su Bai? He looked obedient, but everyone knew he was anything but.

And these young Trainers—they were the very picture of curiosity and recklessness.

One wrong move and they'd probably go off on a "quest for truth" adventure. And when that happened… no one could stop them.

He massaged his temples. "Let me say this up front. Even though I'm a city lord, my security clearance isn't as high as you think."

"There are some things even I don't fully understand."

Su Bai nodded. "Whatever you can tell us is enough. Thanks, Lord Zhu."

Knowing your enemy was key to survival.

And after the appearance of Marlene, Su Bai felt an overwhelming sense of danger.

Especially that final, cold gaze from the void—it was impossible to ignore.

Zhu Jianyuan exhaled slowly. "The truth is, most of what humanity knows about Sub-beast is one-sided."

"Low-level Sub-beast aren't much different from Death beasts, and humans have long known about the cultists who worship death energy. That much is common knowledge."

"But as for the higher-level Sub-beast… all the so-called facts we know about them? In a way, they're just things they've allowed us to know…"

The room instantly erupted in shock.

"They let us know?" Wang Tao asked, baffled. "Aren't Sub-beast our enemies? Who hands over intel to their enemies?!"

It didn't make any sense.

Wang Tao had voiced what everyone was thinking.

Zhu Jianyuan shrugged. "I'm not sure myself. But that's what happened. Years ago, a very powerful Sub-beast broke into Kyoto alone and voluntarily disclosed certain information to us."

"The truth is, Kyoto's power isn't just about having lots of S-class fighters. But that Sub-beast waltzed in… and left completely unscathed."

"It's said that before that incident, Kyoto had been preparing for a full-scale assault on the Death beasts. But after that meeting, the operation was indefinitely shelved."

"As for what was actually said, my rank isn't high enough to know. I may be a border city lord, but compared to those in the central core, I'm just a line of defense…"

"Still, I have my own guesses," he added.

"I think it's simple—humans just can't compare to the Sub-beast."

His face twisted with frustration.

"Sub-beast can internalize death energy, which changes their personalities, their species… Even those not strong enough often degenerate into lower-tier, mindless Sub-beast."

"But those who succeed gain power far beyond anything an Awakened human could dream of."

"You all saw it—Marlene alone could wipe out Boulder City. And this isn't even the first time it's happened…"

Su Bai frowned deeply. According to Zhu Jianyuan, Sub-beast chose to let humans know certain things.

And Marlene—a single Sub-beast—had the power to destroy a city.

She'd also spoken of a "Pontiff" and "Apostles." Clearly, she wasn't even near the top of the food chain. So there were others like her—possibly many.

With that kind of power, what was stopping them from erasing every frontier city in a single night?

Why hadn't they done it?

"…It's a shame I couldn't capture her alive," Su Bai said regretfully.

After all the effort he'd poured into it, he still hadn't gotten much useful intel from Marlene. The frustration gnawed at him.

"But while she thought victory was within reach, she did slip up."

Su Bai's gaze darkened.

"She mentioned a word—breeding."

"They think… they're breeding humans."

"What, like we're their pets? They're sparing us just for amusement?!"

The air in the room seemed to freeze instantly.

For anyone with a functioning conscience, this idea was more terrifying than any monster.

The term breeding—its psychological impact was greater than any of Marlene's attacks.

Even Liu Yunlan, usually carefree and loud, had gone deathly pale.

And the others? Their expressions were filled with rage. If they could've, they'd hunt down ten more Beastkin just to make them pay.

Fortunately, Zhu Jianyuan stepped in to break the silence.

"'Breeding'? Don't be ridiculous!" he said firmly.

"Humanity's survival isn't some Sub-beast charity! Sure, they can control death energy to some extent—but that doesn't mean they're raising Death beasts in cages!"

"In fact, some records show low-level Sub-beast being killed by Death beasts."

"From the moment death energy appeared, humanity has always resisted. Always!"

"You could say we're weaker than them, yes. But this 'breeding' nonsense? That's just Sub-beast delusions."

"We've survived through courage and perseverance—not their mercy."

"And while we may not match them in terms of high-tier power… we're not entirely helpless either!"

Pei Jingguo cut in: "High-tier power? You mean people like Marlene?"

Zhu Jianyuan grinned proudly. "You think humanity only has S-class?"

"Don't be fooled by Marlene's bravado. If she ran into certain people… she wouldn't come out smiling!"

"Humanity didn't make it this far by chance!"